


Summer Haze

by QueenC



Category: 13 Reasons Why (TV)
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Canon Disabled Character, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Mutual Pining, Not Canon Compliant, Slow Burn, Summer Love, a lot of judgment and stereotypes on jocks, boys crushing HARD, i'm not even sorry, takes place in s03
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-10
Updated: 2020-07-14
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:41:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25181152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenC/pseuds/QueenC
Summary: It's the summer break between junior and senior year, and all Alex wants to do is a whole lot of nothing. He does not want to stress over things. He does not want adventures, or big plans, or dealing with feelings. He does not want any complications.He does not count on Charlie St. George coming into his life.
Relationships: Charlie St. George/Alex Standall
Comments: 74
Kudos: 164





	1. June 2018

**Author's Note:**

> I finished rewatching s03 this week and man, the number of opportunities missed!!! Mostly I just felt compelled to write something fun with these two after the heavy load this season dumps on everyone. So as far as this story goes, no one has committed any crimes yet. Also, they're both already aware they're not straight. All in all, I just wanted to write something lighter for a change and the lack of interaction between them on s03 made me do it. I regret nothing.

It was warm outside. Probably too warm for anyone to be thinking about drinking coffee, but Alex was still intent on finishing his whole tour of the Monet's menu, so that's where you'd find him in this fine afternoon on early summer, munching on a scone as he waited for Jessica to come meet him. He was in a good mood. He had made a point of not taking any summer classes or jobs this season – he wanted to just enjoy having free time and no worries, for a change.

Jess, on the other hand, had picked up the afternoon shifts on The Crestmont as a summer job. Alex was a little let down by this, once he thought they would have more time to spend together now during the break, but he also thought that she maybe needed to keep herself busy more than he did. She had been in a foul mood ever since the verdict of Bryce's trial was announced, which was totally understandable. And while Alex did sympathize with her anger, he believed it could do her good to put all that energy into practical use, which was hard during the break unless you found ways to occupy yourself. Also, it's not like he is complaining about all the free popcorn she managed to sneak up to him whenever he stopped by.

However, as Alex absently glanced outwards while reading reviews of movies he intended to watch this summer, he saw Jess crossing the street on her way towards Monet's. Her face was _stormy_. There was no other way to put it. Alex sighed as he put his phone down on the table, bracing himself for the impact.

It didn't matter if it was about him or not. These days, Jess didn't particularly care to filter her rage when she was on a roll – and she looked like she was.

“I hate this fucking town,” were the first words coming out of her mouth as soon as she sagged down on the chair opposite his at their favorite spot on Monet's.

“I don't disagree,” Alex conceded warily, scanning his girlfriend's face for clues of her trail of thoughts. “But what are we hating here specifically?”

“This stupid jock started at The Crestmont today,” Jess huffed out, annoyed. “Like, with all the places he could be getting a summer job, it has to be where I am. It's like I can't catch a break.”

“Who?” Alex frowned.

“Charlie St. Something, I don't know. He's a kid, actually. Just turned seventeen a couple of weeks ago, and apparently his way of celebrating is getting his first job, like--,” Jessica cut herself off as if she couldn't find words offensive enough to describe the audacity of said 17-year-old jock. “Who does that?”

Alex's eyebrows furrowed deeper. “Charlie? What team are we talking about?” It's not like he kept close tabs on everyone in every sports team from Liberty, but it was unavoidable to know most of the names. The pride all the athletes took on walking around campus on those letterman jackets made it hard for anyone with eyes not to recognize them.

“Football. He just made it to the varsity team or whatever, I don't care,” she shook her head and looked intently at Alex as if baffled as to why he was _missing the point_. “He keeps trying to be nice to me all the time, it only makes it worse. I don't need anyone's pity, for fuck's sake.” 

“You totally don't,” agreed Alex, “but maybe it's not pity? I mean, can't he actually just be nice?” At her doubtful look, he shrugged. “I don't know, some people still got it in them.”

“Name one jock that hasn't failed to hold up being nice for longer than it took to get into a girl's pants. You can't say Zach,” warned Jess, as soon as Alex had opened his mouth to answer. “Zach's like a freak of nature. But, you know, they come in small portions. And this Charlie kid, Jesus. First thing he's saying to me is to not judge him by his friends, and what the fuck does that even mean. _Everyone_ gets judged by their friends. It's how you know people.”

“I can see some logic there, but I can also see the flaws in it,” Alex arched his eyebrows, amused. It had been a while since he last saw Jess rambling on this much. Whoever this Charlie was, he definitely made an impression.

“Come on, Alex, take it seriously. Do you think any jock would have reasons to be nice to me now?” Jess insisted, skeptical. 

“Maybe? Perhaps he feels bad about everything,” suggested Alex. When Jessica's expression remained threateningly still, he threw his hands in the air, exasperated. “I don't know, Jess, and you'll only know for sure if you give him a chance.”

That made Jessica bristle, though. “I'm sorry, are you telling me how I should handle my aversion to jocks right now?” She asked in disbelief. 

“No,” Alex deflated. “No, Jess, of course not.”

“Good,” she said fiercely, “cause you shouldn't.” 

Alex spent most of their time together keeping to himself after that. He mostly hummed his acknowledgment to whatever comment Jess made, but he wasn't paying close attention to what she was saying.

The thing is, it was really hard to talk to Jess these days. He knew she had her motivations to be pissed, and he fully understood where her rage stemmed from, but the fact remained that she was constantly defensive and quick to anger – and Alex took the brunt of it more often than he would like to admit. As much as he tried to shrug it off, her carelessness was starting to hurt deeper than he anticipated.

He could understand her reasons, but that didn't mean he didn't have feelings of his own. Jess didn't seem to be taking that into account. She was too focused on herself to see anything beyond. And it was fine, really – fuck, Alex knew better than anyone else what needing time to figure out your own shit was like. But that was exactly the point. She was not in a place to care about anyone but herself right now. On more than one occasion, Alex had thought to himself that maybe what Jess needed now was a friend and not a boyfriend. He wanted to be there for her, he truly did, but he wondered how much of it had to be done at the expense of swallowing his own feelings.

As June went on, their relationship seemed to waver more and more, and Alex was just expecting Jessica to break up with him at any minute now. He didn't want to be the one to do it, if anything not to add one more topic to her list of things to be angry about. Curiously enough, Jessica seemed to have found a way to blow off some steam by picking incessantly on her jock coworker at any chance she got. Alex felt he knew more of Charlie's small quirks and bad habits than was probably wise for someone he hadn't yet officially met.

So this one day, as he was waiting for Jessica to finish her turn at The Crestmont, he was surprised to actually meet Charlie in person. Jess used to send him in meaningless tasks most of the time, so Alex was taken aback at seeing him up front this time.

Honestly, he would be the first to admit he was probably biased, holding a grudge carefully cultivated over a fortnight worth of Jess badmouthing the jock. There's only so much you can hear about someone without being influenced, so Alex had no idea what expression was going on on his face as he hobbled his way to the balcony, cane tapping softly against the carpeted floor. 

“Hello, you,” the boy said cheerfully, wiping the balcony clean with a smooth rag. “Jess is talking to the boss lady in the back. She will be here soon.”

“Thanks,” said Alex absentmindedly. His attention was focused on the boy in front of him. He had this aura about him that looked positive and lively, and Alex had to wonder how did it even come across so visibly, considering they had just exchanged a couple of words. “You're Charlie, right?” Alex chanced. 

He lifted his gaze and beamed, pointing to his name tag excitedly. No doubt, it read _Charlie_. “That would be me, yes! Did Jess talk about me?”

“Oh, yeah, she said plenty,” drawled Alex sarcastically. He was quick to change directions on that conversation when Charlie tilted his head, curious. “I'm Alex, by the way.” 

“I know,” Charlie nodded, reverting to his big grin. It was Alex's turn to look at him curiously, and Charlie shrugged. “Zach talks a lot about you. We have practice together now that he's changed to football.”

“Oh. Right.” Did it sting a little that Charlie didn't hear about him from Jess? Yes. But to be honest, not surprising. 

“It's nice to finally meet you, though. In person, I mean. I was curious to see what it was all about,” said Charlie good-naturedly.

“What was what about, exactly?” Alex furrowed his eyebrows. 

Charlie faltered a bit, belatedly realizing he had said too much. “Oh, uh-- I didn't mean it like a bad thing. Some guys were saying some things in the lockers--”

“Why am I not surprised,” mumbled Alex.

“No, but it was cool, Zach shut them all up. And I don't believe half the things I hear, anyway, so I was mostly just curious.” His eyes were wide, and he was looking at Alex as if scared that he had offended him with his thoughtless comment. “I've been wanting to meet you for a while now, but Jess is so defensive of you whenever you're around, I was like-- you know. Thinking I'd never get to meet you.”

“Why would you?” Alex mused.

Charlie's eyebrows furrowed. “Sorry?” 

“Why would you ever want to meet me?” Alex clarified. 

“Why would I not?” Asked Charlie baffled. “You seem to be a nice guy.”

“This is literally the first time we're seeing each other,” Alex shook his head, exasperated. “How would you know that?”

“I just know things,” Charlie deflected, taking his time to disassemble a pile of bubble gum that stood on the far corner of the balcony. “Also, it may be the first time you see me, but it's so not the other way around,” he threw a sideways glance at Alex and grinned. Fucking grinned. For what was probably the twentieth time in the short amount of time they were talking, and that had to be a Guinness record somewhere.

Okay, so now Alex could totally understand what Jess had said about Charlie being overly nice. But opposed to her, he didn't think it was a bad thing. Or that the boy was forcing his cheerful disposition – it felt pretty genuine to Alex. Which was actually scarier than if he believed Charlie was faking it. How could someone be that open and friendly – being a jock, on top of all things. This was oddly uncharacteristic behavior. Zach would probably flip him off for saying so, but honestly, all the Tigers cared about was putting up a facade to maintain their status (minus Zach, of course, and probably Justin, but only because they now belonged to a band of misfits. And Alex was sure that if he asked either of them, they wouldn't be able to explain rationally how the hell did they end up hanging around with their current friends. They hadn't had much of a choice there.) 

“Cool,” nodded Alex, shifting his weight on his feet. This conversation had turned awkward faster than he anticipated. “Well, it was nice meeting you. I'll just-- I think I'll just wait for Jess outside.” 

He grabbed his cane and turned on his heel as fast as he could without tripping on his own feet. Still, not quick enough to miss the disappointed expression on Charlie's face as he stumbled his way out of The Crestmont.

About ten minutes into waiting, his phone buzzed in his back pocket. Alex reached for it, unlocking the screen to a message from Jess saying that she would have to stay for the night shift to cover up for an employee that wouldn't make it. He quickly typed a response, inwardly cursing his bad luck. Not only now he had a bunch of free time he didn't know what to do with, but he also had to face a lonely walk back home – and while the distance between The Crestmont and his house was not a great one, covering it while supporting himself with a cane was a short recipe for a sore knee at the end of the day.

He was halfway into the next block when a car slowly pulled up on the sidewalk next to him. Alex glanced up to find Charlie rolling down his window, looking up at him from inside his jeep. 

“Want a ride?” He offered. “I heard Jess will be stuck with the next shift.”

Alex's first impulse was to deny. If not out of pride, certainly because being around Charlie's overall sunny disposition left him at a loss on how to function properly. But as he thought of the distance he still had to cover until he got to his house, his leg started to throb as a reminder that he maybe should not strain himself that much. 

“Sure,” he tottered to the car, lifting himself into the seat as soon as Charlie unlocked the door. “Thanks.”

“Anytime,” answered Charlie easily. “Where am I heading to?”

He gave him the directions to his house, and Charlie put the car back into motion. Alex watched him as discreetly as he could, taking the opportunity now that the boy was distracted with his eyes on the road. He did look young. But Alex couldn't tell if this was because he knew Charlie was in fact younger, or if his good-natured manners also served to lend him his boyish looks. What Alex knew for a fact is that he had never looked this carefree in his life, no matter how young he was. This made all sorts of questions bubble up in his head.

He wasn't shy to admit that he was intrigued by Charlie, but he would not be the one to start asking questions. Especially because he felt that the kind of questions he wanted to ask were maybe too personal for someone he had just known that day. Maybe as time went by and they were more familiar with each other, Alex would feel more comfortable to ask Charlie-- 

Okay, so how had he gone from rushing away from this boy's presence to imagining a future where they would grow close in less than half an hour escaped Alex completely, but he wouldn't focus on that now. Because _now_ Charlie was talking to him, and he forced his attention back to the present. “She doesn't like me, does she? I can tell.” 

Alex blinked, caught off guard. “What are you talking about?” 

“Jessica,” he clarified. “She gives me the stink eye ever since we started working together.”

“I don't think it's you specifically that she doesn't like,” reasoned Alex, “if you know what I mean.”

Charlie nodded in understanding. “Yeah, I know. I just-- I wanted her not to think the same thing of all the jocks just because we share a team. It's really bad that she does, but I can't say it's unfounded,” he chewed on his bottom lip as he tried to sort through his thoughts, and Alex was a little too distracted by the sight to think of interrupting. “But then I also think that this bad rep is something that we as a team need to work on putting past us, instead of demanding from someone who was directly affected by it to be lenient.”

This time, Alex fully turned in his seat to look at him. “Jesus, you really are just starting on the main team, aren't you?” 

“I am,” he agreed, “but I know what I want to be known for. And it's for being a good quarterback. That's all that matters to me.”

Alex caught himself smiling at him. “I really hope you don't end up getting corrupted along the way,” he leaned against the headrest, still eyeing Charlie curiously. “If it makes you feel any better, she's being quite vicious towards pretty much anyone lately. It's not just you. I think it's her way of dealing with all this shit.”

“I'm really scared of her,” confessed Charlie. 

“Yeah, me too,” agreed Alex.

“You're her boyfriend!” Charlie laughed, amused.

“Not for long, I'm afraid,” it escaped his mouth before he had the time to think it through, and he winced. “Oh, shit. Forget I said that.”

“It's alright,” Charlie quickly looked at him before turning his eyes back to the traffic. “I mean, it's not like I would tell her. But-- I don't know, do you want to talk about it?”

“There's not much to say, really,” and Alex wasn't even evading with this answer, it was just a plain fact. “Things are weird between us lately. I'm thinking maybe we're better off as friends.”

Charlie hummed his agreement, fingers tapping rhythmically against the wheel. “Well, I'm sure she has all the reasons for reservations right now, but truly, any person who wouldn't be happy to have you as a boyfriend is clearly not thinking straight.”

“Thanks for feeding my ego,” Alex rolled his eyes, but he couldn't help his amusement. “But I have to remind you you barely know me to say something like that.”

“I like what I see so far,” stated Charlie simply, a grin curling up at the corner of his lips.

“You are such a flatterer. I can already see girls fainting at the very sight of your blue jacket when the school year starts,” said Alex sardonically, and while it was meant to be a jab, there was also some truth behind it. He honestly hoped Charlie could stick to this wide-eyed innocence he seemed to display now, but with his looks and the companies he would be having, Alex found it hard to believe that it would not go to his head. 

Wait, was he just thinking about Charlie's looks? How did it-- 

“If that's a thing, I'll be very sorry to disappoint them. I'm afraid my attention has already been caught for the time being,” and now he was looking at Alex, and Alex was at a loss here. Was he flirting? Like, actually flirting? Or was he just that extra amount of nice? 

“Really?” Said Alex, and it was a miracle that his voice wasn't wavering because his insides definitely were. “Who's the lucky one?”

At that, Charlie had _the gall_ to actually blush, and Alex found himself staring one more time. How did he even get himself into this situation?! “It's just wishful thinking, at this point,” Charlie shrugged it off, avoiding the question. “I don't really think I have a shot.”

“I think you'll find you probably have a shot with pretty much anyone you decide to pursue,” retorted Alex, and oh my God, was he flirting back? This was getting out of control. 

“Who's the flatterer now,” Charlie joked, and the smile on his face was so big that Alex was blinded by it. “We're here.”

Alex looked outside to find himself in front of his own house, and he had to be deeply focused on their exchange not to have noticed it sooner. He unbuckled his seat belt, fumbling a bit in the process, and reached for his cane as fast as he could. He was equal parts desperate to get out of the car and willing to stay wrapped up into that conversation for longer. He knew there was only one valid course of action here, though. 

“Thanks for the ride,” he said. “I'll see you around, I think?”

“I should definitely hope so,” said Charlie, and fuck if the look on his face wasn't honest-to-god hopeful. Alex stared for what felt like the millionth time. He didn't know what to do with this boy. Except as put as much distance between the both of them as quickly as he could, before he ended up saying – or doing – something he would regret later. 

He jumped out of the car, fully supporting his weight on the cane because he didn't trust his knees not to buckle in this exact moment. As he turned to close the car door, his eyes met Charlie's.

He was grinning. It was a nice grin. It was a damn charming grin, actually. And when Alex caught up with what his own face was doing, he figured it was mirroring the smile on the other boy's face.

Well, _fuck_.


	2. July 2018

Alex knew in his heart that Zach was his best friend, but right now he was finding it quite difficult to remember why such thing ever happened.

He was currently occupying a seat at the bleachers on the football field. The day was hot, and he was sweating, and he _hated_ sweating. Today was Zach's first practice as captain, and although he'd played it cool enough in front of everyone to make it believable that he was chill and confident, Alex had been there to watch his nervous breakdown the night before. Which had led to the present, where he was now there for moral support.

Zach had made his appreciation very much known during the entire ride to school, with all his thank-yous and bless-yous, but after getting sticky and sunburnt in the first half-hour, there was no way Alex was letting him off the hook on less than a milkshake after this. He made a point of making it clear as soon as they'd arrived, and Alex saw what he was in for. Zach was quick to assure him a trip to Rosie's was on its way as soon as they were done there.

Did Alex have any other ulterior motives to be at a morning football practice in the middle of the summer vacations? Perhaps. Possibly. Yes. He would forever deny it.

Zach was doing fine so far, as much as Alex could tell from his admittedly scarce knowledge of football. He had grown up with his brother and father being really into the sport, so he knew the basics, but that was as far as he got. Enough to know his best friend was leading a neat job, even with quite a few players throwing sullen glances his way. Alex rolled his eyes internally. You had to be really dumb to ever consider Monty could be a better captain than Zach. Jess had her share of reason on deeming all jocks stupid assholes.

A loud clattering announced the arrival of someone into his personal space, and as Alex glanced at the previously empty seat by his side, his eyes fell on one of those stupid assholes. The blue jersey gave it away. The huge smile on his face, otherwise, didn't – if you were to ignore his attire, with those awful shoulder pads and the headpiece covering most of his face, you could actually believe someone nice was hiding there, with that smile. 

“Hey, Alex!” Charlie greeted, taking a second to pull his helmet off. “Didn't know you were a football fan.”

“I'm most definitely not,” guaranteed Alex. He stared at Charlie's grinning face and stifled a laugh at the top of his hair sticking at weird places from where his helmet had previously ruffled it. His hand was already lifting to smooth it down when he caught up with himself, and _what the fuck_. “Uh, Zach made me. It's his first day as captain, so. You know. Moral support and all that.”

“I see,” nodded Charlie, eyes roaming to the tall 85-jersey barking commands at the edge of the field. “He'll be a good captain.”

Alex was mildly surprised at that one. “You think so?”

“Yeah, sure. He is legit righteous, and the team could definitely benefit from that,” he winced a little as if the mere acknowledgment of the Tiger's vast lack of moral compass over the last few years was embarrassing. And Alex supposed it had to be if you had the slightest ounce of empathy inside yourself. Charlie had just scored some more points himself there – at least on Alex's scoreboard.

Ever since Alex and Charlie had officially met last month, they were getting on pretty well – as unexpected as this was to Alex. On the occasions he'd stopped by The Crestmont to see Jess, Charlie had always found a way to at least show up to say hi. Alex had also found out that Charlie's shift started one hour before Jess's, and it became kind of a habit for him to get to The Crestmont earlier to wait for her arrival. You know, just to welcome her and everything. Not in the slightest to have an excuse to talk to Charlie before she could send him away in whatever task.

And then the inevitable happened, and Jess had broken up with him. It had honestly been a relief, but Alex couldn't say that to her, of course. And as she seemed guilty for having done so, things were still a little odd between them, so Alex had stopped showing up over the past week. He wanted to give her space to work out through her shit. But that had come at the cost of not seeing Charlie anymore, and Alex was not shy to admit that he had missed talking to the jock.

Alex felt his lips quirking up at their own volition and didn't bother fighting the small smile on his face. “How come you're not down there?” Alex tilted his head towards the field. 

“Oh, you know, I just made the varsity team. But I still have a lot to learn, a lot of plays and moves I have to study more, so Coach told me to just watch the first quarter before joining. Can't say I'm complaining,” he shrugged, eyes squinting as he shielded them with his hand to look up at the sky. “It is warm today.”

“Don't fucking tell me,” muttered Alex, pulling the collar of his shirt down for the hundredth time. “I'm mostly surviving on the thought of a milkshake after enduring this torture.” 

“That's a great idea,” agreed Charlie. His eyes caught up on the skin exposed by Alex's collar, and Alex froze, too self-conscious to even put it back into place. He was sure his face was burning. Charlie snapped his eyes back to Alex's, rambling on as if he wasn't just caught staring. “My favorites are from Rosie's. I think they added new flavors this summer.”

“Um,” was all Alex could answer. He could still feel the blush subsiding from his face, way too slowly for his liking. He would blame it on the heat, and not on the fact that he liked Charlie's eyes on him. “They-- did they? Wow, it's been a long time since I've been--”

“Charlie! You're in!” Zach's voice thundered from the field, and Alex was left questioning his friendship choices once again. No way one single milkshake would cut it after this interruption – Zach better improve his game and get him fries to go with it. 

“Gotta go,” Charlie sighed, seemingly reluctant to leave. He adjusted his helmet back on, and Alex hated it a bit – for he couldn't see his face properly anymore, and he just looked like any other jock now. “You should try Rosie's, though. Promise you won't regret it.”

And then he skipped off to the field. Alex could almost swear he had winked at him on his way out, but he couldn't say for sure with that stupid headpiece. He was probably mistaken, though. Or just projecting. Either way, his heart felt warmer all the same – and he would never in a million years admit it, but even football became more bearable once Charlie was on the field.

* * *

“I'm sorry, man. It was totally out of the blue,” Zach said lamely. 

“Zach, you promised,” chided Alex. 

“I know, I know, but my mom had this thing that came up, and now she can't take May to ballet, so I have to run to get her in time,” his best friend apologized, flailing his arms awkwardly as he usually did when nervous. “I'm so sorry. I'll be owing you a milkshake.”

“You can bet your ass you will,” stressed Alex. “Okay, fine. But just cause it's May. Otherwise, I would make you pay for every single second of my life you had me wasting here.” 

“I'm sure you would,” Zach laughed, shaking his head amusedly. “I can still drop you off, though. I'll get you back home, let me just get my stuff.”

“At the very least,” and by that Alex meant 'thanks', according to his particular dictionary.

“Don't be mean,” warned Zach, and after a beat, he conceded. “Thanks for being here today. I know you hate sports, so I can really appreciate you having my back on this one.”

Alex's expression softened, and if it wasn't for his neck burning under the sun, he'd be willing to let all of Zach's sins slide. “Well, you did practically drag me. But you are my best friend. I'd be here anyways.”

Zach's grin widened, and he threw a salute at Alex before jogging to the lockers. The amount of energy it seemed to take tired Alex to no end. Lazily, he stood up from his seat, ready to leave at the very moment Zach returned – and then his eyes landed on Charlie, phone in hand, making his way out of the lockers. His hair was damp from the shower he'd probably just taken, and he was wearing a white shirt under the Tiger's blue jacket. Alex absently realized this was the first time he was seeing Charlie in normal clothes, and of course he had to be wearing his fucking letterman jacket.

“How are you not melting?” Alex mused, staring at his approaching form. “I take one look at you and I'm warm all over.”

Charlie's head snapped back up from his phone. His eyes found Alex, and he grimaced. “What can I say? It has grown on me,” he pulled at the flaps of his jacket, sending a slightly guilty look at the older boy. 

“I'm not surprised at all,” said Alex unimpressed. “Actually, I think I called this one coming.”

“I'm sure you did, some point over the past weeks, during your merciless teasing about all that encompasses being a Liberty Tiger,” informed Charlie. 

“Well, was I wrong?” Alex arched his eyebrows, amused.

Charlie grimaced again, breaking into a laugh. “Shut up. Call it a fashion choice, if you like. I have excellent taste in clothes,” he stuck his nose up proudly, and Alex rolled his eyes, amused. “Going for that milkshake?”

Alex shook his head. “Not really. Zach's mom had a thing, so he'll have to take his sister to her ballet class,” he smiled wryly. “All my suffering was for nothing, in the end.”

“We could go for it if you'd like?” Charlie offered, weight shifting on the soles of his feet. Was he nervous? It was a bit hard to tell with him. “I mean, I'm free now after practice. We could maybe try that new flavor I told you about?” He risked. At Alex's stunned silence, he quickly added, “Unless it was a you-and-Zach thing. It's okay if it was, I just thought--”

“No, it wasn't,” Alex interrupted, eyes trained on the rambling jock in front of him. “It was not-- there's no such thing. So yeah, sure. We could go together.”

“Yeah?” Charlie's eyes were sparkling, and Alex couldn't tell if it was due to the sun, or just because they were stupidly bright like that. “Cool. Okay, it'll be nice.”

“Let me just tell Zach I won't need a ride home anymore,” said Alex. “I'll meet you at the parking lot.”

Charlie nodded, smile glued to his face, and headed towards the exit. Alex instead made his way down the bleachers, where he waited for Zach to stride out of the locker room, sports bag dangling from his right shoulder. His eyes widened comically when Alex told him of the news. 

“Dude,” said Zack emphatically, “you know Rosie's, like, a dating place, right?”

“The fuck are you saying,” Alex rolled his eyes. “We were about to go there a few minutes ago.”

“Yeah, cause we're like brothers or something. Don't play dumb with me, Standall,” Zach watched him carefully, and Alex shuffled under the attention. “Unless.”

“Unless what?” Alex scowled. 

“Unless you _want_ it to be a date,” Zach arched his eyebrows, and Alex could see comprehension dawning upon his features.

“Shut up,” chided Alex, and now was the worst time to start blushing, but he could feel it creeping up his neck all the same. Zach let out a delighted laugh. “He's a kid.”

“Shut up you, Alex, what a lame excuse. He's like, one year younger or something,” mocked Zach, throwing an arm over Alex's shoulders as they started their way to the parking lot. “When did this happen? I had no idea you were into him.”

“Apparently me neither,” confessed Alex. “Maybe he didn't mean it as a date. In fact, I'm pretty sure this word was never mentioned.”

Zach deadpanned at his friend's naivety. “He's a jock. He takes his dates to Rosie's. We sell it like it's a cool thing, but deep down we're just not that much creative.” Zach squeezed his shoulder. “I'm happy for you though. You deserve something good, after everything with Jess.”

“You are way ahead of things here, Zach,” said Alex, exasperated. “And every time you say the word _date_ , you take me one step closer to a heart attack, so please, just stop.”

“Relax, it'll be fine,” he waved at Charlie as they reached the parking lot, letting go of Alex. “Tell me about it later. Also, tell me if he does something you don't like. I'll have words with him if that's the case.”

“What,” wheezed Alex, staring at his best friend, dumbfounded. “We are going for a milkshake, for Christ's sake!”

“Well, you'll spend some time alone with him in his car, and he _is_ known for his hands,” confided Zach. “I've heard stories.”

 _“What,”_ Alex fretted, throwing a desperate look at Charlie, who watched them obliviously from his car.

Zach tapped a stricken Alex on the back before turning to his Audi. “But he's just a kid, right? You got nothing to be scared of, old man.”

“Fuck you,” said Alex lamely.

“Text me later,” chirped Zach gleefully, vanishing into his car. What a fucker.

As he turned to Charlie's car, where the jock already waited for him with the ignition on, Alex was a ball of nerves. Charlie probably didn't mean it as a date, but it was too late now – the idea was installed in Alex's mind, thanks to Zach. Seriously, he was in dire need of new friends. 

* * *

It went all pretty smoothly, to Alex's surprise. He thought he would ruin it with his nerves, but interesting discovery – Charlie seemed to have a way to put him at ease. A few minutes into entering Rosie's, Charlie already had Alex laughing at his antics for picking a milkshake flavor. He had a whole system figured out. It basically involved closing your eyes and randomly pointing a finger at the menu. Alex flat out called it luck. Charlie took offense at that. It was embarrassingly endearing. 

“So,” Charlie started once they got their orders and were comfortably seated in a corner booth. “You haven't been to The Crestmont lately.”

“Yeah,” shrugged Alex, tasting his mango milkshake. It _was_ good, actually. “Jess broke up with me. I figured she could do with some time apart.”

“I thought so,” said Charlie. “She's been oddly quiet lately. I don't think I've heard one single 'fuck off' this entire last week.”

Alex chuckled. “She's feeling guilty, I guess. Which she shouldn't. We weren't working out together anymore anyway.” 

“I'm sorry to hear that,” said Charlie, watching him closely. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I'm fine,” said Alex. “It's like I told you, I think we're better as friends. We will get there again eventually, I hope.” He played with the straw of his milkshake distractedly before building up the courage to add, “I am kind of relieved, actually. I know it's bad to say it, but-- I was just waiting for her to break things up.”

“Oh,” said Charlie, surprised. “Well, I guess it's my loss, then. I was really getting used to having you around.”

“Well,” started Alex, uncertain. “We could still hang out outside of The Crestmont, you know. If you'd like, that is.”

“Yeah,” agreed Charlie, and the grin spreading across his lips was one of the brightest Alex had ever seen. “Yeah, I'd like that a lot.”

They talked amenities over their milkshakes for a while until Alex's phone buzzed with a message from his dad offering to pick him up on his way home for lunch. He typed a reply, a little sad to have to leave already. But as he glanced at the time, he saw they were there for longer than he had realized.

“You don't have to wait for your dad. I mean, I could totally drive you,” offered the jock as they walked outside of the restaurant and into the parking area.

“No, it's fine,” reassured Alex. “The station is just around the corner, you don't have to bother. He'll be here any minute.”

“It would never be a bother,” said Charlie softly, fishing his keys from his pocket. He eyed Alex with a curious expression. “Wait, your dad's a cop? Wow, I gotta watch my behavior closely then.”

“Why is that? Are you planning on turning into a criminal anytime soon?” Alex joked, one eyebrow arched in amusement as he leaned his weight against Charlie's car to give his knee a rest.

“Not really,” dismissed Charlie, “but I might be thinking one thing or two I'm not so sure he would approve much.”

Alex was starting to lose count of how many times he had already blushed this morning. He turned an inquiring look at Charlie, gauging his expression – did he mean what Alex thought he meant? 

Judging by the way his eyes were fixed on Alex's lips, Alex was fairly sure that _oh my God, he meant it, yes,_ and now he was coming closer and then leaning down slowly, and when had Alex closed his eyes exactly? He had no idea. 

And he didn't care. _This was happening._

Alex could feel Charlie's breath hitting softly against his cheek, and he parted his lips slightly, unconsciously. He heard Charlie's sharp intake of breath at the sight, and the tip of his nose touched his own so lightly Alex almost felt ticklish. He actually felt ticklish all over, but not in the funny kind of way. Definitely not the funny kind. 

But then he also heard a car honking, and he sprung apart from Charlie so fast he was surprised by his own speed. His stomach fell to his feet when he suddenly remembered his dad was on his way, and _Jesus Christ_ , had he seen anything? He peeked around Charlie's jeep and yeah, sure, there was his dad, no doubts.

“I gotta go,” said Alex hurriedly, thanking his small mercies that Charlie's car blocked the view from the streetway.

“Alex--” started Charlie.

“We'll talk later,” squeaked Alex, hand fumbling on his cane before he found his coordination again and started his way to his dad's car. He heard Charlie calling his name yet again, but he didn't turn around. There was only so much tension he could deal with at once. 

His lips were tingling, though, with the phantom feeling of what could have been Charlie's own lips pressed against them. It had been _so fucking close._ Alex smiled at his dad as he entered the car, but he was mildly sure it wasn't convincing at all.

* * *

**(1:23 PM) Zach Dempsey:** _dude wth tell me how that date went_

 **(1:27 PM) Alex Standall:** _fuck off to hell dempsey_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this fic should actually be called "3 times Chalex were interrupted by someone" lol  
> thank you so much for reading! I appreciate your comments a lot <3


	3. August 2018

**(4:13 PM) Charlie St. George:** _hey_

 **(4:13 PM) Charlie St. George:** _youve been silent since yesterday_

 **(4:14 PM) Charlie St. George:** _so I don't really know how to go about this but_

 **(4:15 PM) Charlie St. George:** _you said we could hang out some place else than the crestmont so idk_

 **(4:17 PM) Charlie St. George:** _would you like to maybe do something tomorrow?_

 **(4:38 PM) Charlie St. George:** _alex?_

 **(4:41 PM) Charlie St. George:** _look if I somehow offended you yesterday i'm sorry_

 **(5:26 PM) Charlie St. George:** _alex cmon man talk to me_

That had been a week ago. And yet Alex still checked his inbox every morning, hopefully expecting that Charlie had sent him something else overnight.

He hadn't so far. And Alex couldn't blame him in the slightest, which he reasonably knew. He had been the one not responding in the first place. But it was one thing to know this, and another entirely different one to wistfully expect your crush to read your mind about whatever reasons you might have to completely ghost him after you almost kissed. Alex was a little too stuck on the latter.

He was being a coward and he knew it. There wasn't much he could say in his defense.

Even without the Charlie thing, it had been a hard week – and that was a statement Alex would not expect to use, considering he still was on vacation. But his doctor had increased his recommended time for PT, his brother was home to visit from college, and Jess was finally talking to him again. Alex was glad for this last part, at least – he missed Jessica as a friend, and it was a relief to know that their friendship would survive their whole affair. But the amount of _feelings_ to deal with, Jesus Christ.

Jess wanted to talk about her feelings at length so that nothing would stand in their way again, at least according to her. Alex was so not in the mood for this talk. He was not in the mood for anything that required minimal emotional effort, but for the sake of their friendship, he had gritted his teeth and trudged on.

And then something funny happened, as he was baring his soul to Jess. An unrequited discovery. As he deliberately kept his speech focused on the both of them, his mind had strayed places. His mind had strayed to one specific person, and Alex was forced to acknowledge a truth he'd been trying to evade for some time now. 

He liked Charlie St. George. Possibly a lot. Certainly enough to bluntly avoid him over the past few days because he didn't know. What to do. With his feelings. For this boy.

Ever since their almost-kiss, Alex had disappeared into his room. He had curled into his bed the whole week, ignoring the good weather outside, playing video games to exhaustion. One could say he was deftly avoiding reality, indeed. Alex only left for PT, and that was only because Zach didn't let him get away with not showing up. He was working harder on letting go of his cane, and Zach believed that when the school year started, he would be able to move entirely without needing it.

Speaking of Zach, he was also the one who tried to knock some sense into Alex (“dude, what are you _doing_? Why would you avoid someone you happen to like?”) but it had been to no avail.

Because the thing is, Alex himself didn't know for sure why he was acting the way he was acting. He did like Charlie, yes. That one was a given he wasn't trying to shy away from anymore. It wasn't because Charlie was a boy – despite never actually getting any action with another guy, it wasn't the first time Alex's interest in boys was making an appearance. So why was he acting like an eighth-grader with a crush, fumbling with his words and blushing at the very thought of the jock – well, that one he didn't have an answer for.

(He'd been to pick Jess up from The Crestmont just two days ago, and in his head, Alex was fully certain he would walk into that theater, make a straight line to the balcony, and demand from Charlie the kiss that had been keeping him awake at night specifically because it hadn't happened. Alex was sure he would do it. Well, if not so, then at least talk to Charlie. He could also settle for that.

Reality had different plans though, and as soon as his eyes landed on Charlie, Alex was bolting back out the door, heart hammering in his chest. Holy shit, _he so was an eighth-grader with a crush._ Jess joined him soon after, a puzzled look on her face, and Alex prayed to all heavens Charlie hadn't seen him behaving in such an undignified manner.)

And fuck this, he had not signed up for this shit. All he had hoped for were peaceful, uneventful, even boring vacations. Instead, he got this whirlwind of emotions, a constant headache for not knowing what to do with them, and this anxious energy that left him constantly on edge. The only upside was that now he was so fucking sure his dick wasn't broken. It couldn't be, not with how much he'd been putting it to use whenever intruding thoughts about Charlie pushed their way into his head – which seemed to be happening quite a lot lately. 

Alex would be playing video games, and suddenly there was Charlie, grin plastered to his face, looking at him from behind the balcony at The Crestmont. Alex would be having breakfast with his family, and look, there comes Charlie again, sitting across from him at a table on Rosie's, lips wrapping around the straw of his milkshake, and _oh boy_. Goddamn it, Alex would remember his stupid figure inside his ridiculous football uniform, and when had he become this kind of person? He recalled a time, in a not so distant past, when he had zero to none tolerance with jocks. Fate was playing a good one on him – and the worst was part that Alex wasn't even as bothered as he thought he should be. 

He was scared, he had come to realize, as days passed and his mind cooled off enough that he was able to make sense of things. Scared of how intense his feelings seemed to be, and of how his connection with Charlie felt so easy and genuine for such a short period of time. Alex wanted Charlie, it is important to stress – he wanted him so fucking much he spent every minute he was awake thinking about the jock, and it wasn't rare that Charlie somehow made his way into his dreams, too. He was fully aware he was acting the extreme opposite, though. Alex didn't actively want to stay away or to come off as indifferent, and yet he knew this was exactly as he was coming off, and holy fuck, the whole conundrum only made him freak out some more. 

So when Tyler asked for his help to organize his photography materials for the upcoming school year, Alex was quick to say yes. He was tired of cowering in his room thinking of what could be. Charlie had football practice a couple of days a week during the break, and who knows. It was not impossible that he'd run into him at school, and maybe they could talk, and Alex could pretend he had not ignored his texts for a solid week. _Who knows._ He would try his luck at that one.

* * *

It was his fourth day with Tyler on the yearbook room, and Alex was starting to think fate was very much not on his side. He hadn't seen one single glimpse of Charlie so far. None! Summer school did not attract that many people and the areas allowed for student access weren't even that plenty, so what the hell. Alex grew antsy by the minute. The build-up to their potential meeting was driving him nuts, and he had to laugh at himself because it would be so much easier if he just answered Charlie's fucking texts, but nah. He had a thing for putting himself through unnecessary pining, it seemed. 

“Dude, are you okay?” Tyler's voice called him back to Earth. Alex lifted his eyes to see his friend watching him curiously from the other side of the table. “You're jittering so hard you're messing all my work here.”

Alex blinked and stared at the table. Tyler had been organizing his pictures in neat piles of what he could use next semester, but that wasn't looking so neat anymore. Alex was shaking his leg so hard under the table that a bunch of piles had tumbled sideways, mixing up with other pictures yet unprocessed by his friend. He grimaced self-consciously once he realized this was his fault. 

“Sorry,” Alex rushed to apologize. “I'm fine, sorry, I just-- I have a lot on my mind lately.”

“Of course,” nodded Tyler, still pinning Alex with that characteristic Tyler-Down-look that seemed to reach you to the very bottom of your soul. Alex shifted uncomfortably in his chair, averting his eyes. “You seem tense.”

“That's one way to put it,” grumbled Alex, rubbing his hands together under the table. So he successfully managed to control his jittering leg, but it seemed impossible to stop his body from translating its inner turmoil into movement. That evidently had to happen in front of one of the most observative persons he knew, because Alex was just lucky like that.

“Is something going on?” Asked Tyler, and now the dip of his eyebrows seemed concerned. “I mean, can I help you with something? You wanna talk?”

Alex considered his options for a moment. He had gone over this with Zach (that is to say, Zach had excruciatingly extracted the truth from him because he just couldn't leave it alone, could he) but the Tigers' captain had lost his patience somewhere over the last days, and his final ultimatum had been something around the words “don't fucking talk to me about Charlie St. George again unless it's to say you tapped that”. It had been pretty much only Alex and his hand ever since. 

He wasn't sure he wanted to talk about this with Tyler, though. Not because he didn't trust him, but well, Tyler kind of had _actual problems_ to worry about. Spring Fling was still on everyone's minds. Alex couldn't help but feel ridiculous to sit there and talk about his pining over a boy to someone who once thought of shooting the school. Tyler was doing much better now, but Alex still didn't think he would be much impressed by his dilemma. 

“Thanks, Ty, I'm good,” he forced a smile to his lips, eyes roaming over the table in search of a topic to change directions. “Did you say anything about wanting a copy of those?” Alex pointed to a smaller pile of pictures Tyler was putting together.

“Yeah, I did, actually,” Tyler glanced over the photos, picking them up from the table. “Would you mind? I need them to start on some collage drafts, can you get me five copies of each, please?” 

“Sure,” said Alex, more than glad for an excuse to put his restless energy to use. “I'll take them to the copy room for you.”

“Thanks,” said Tyler distractedly, all his focus already back to his work. Alex was mildly surprised to find out that he did have friends who knew when to leave things alone.

The trip to the copy room was an uneventful one, and it honestly took Alex less time than he expected to get all the copies done. So if he decided to roam around the gym area for a bit afterwards, it was mainly because he was trying his hand at walking cane-free these days, and he could use the exercise. It was not because he wanted to give fate a hand and accidentally run into a certain jock. Of course not. That's preposterous. 

There was only so much strolling around one could do, though, and Alex was not in a good mood as he returned to the main building. Fate hated him, he was sure of that now. He was mulling this over as he turned the corner of the library when someone ran into him with such force that the air was knocked out of his chest. Alex managed to stay upright by leaning his weight against the wall, but his grip faltered, and there went Tyler's pictures falling in a heap to the floor.

“Fucking unbelievable,” muttered Alex under his breath, recognizing first the blue jacket before anything else. He kneeled not without effort, and then leveled up his gaze, working on his best scowl to properly diss whatever stupid jock had almost knocked him to the ground. Then his eyes landed on Charlie, and his heart was dropping to his stomach, and he forgot completely how to use his hands to start piling up the pictures from the floor. 

“Oh my God, I'm so sorry,” apologized Charlie flustered, crouching down to help Alex. “I didn't see you there – well, clearly – sorry to bump into you like that.”

“It's fine, really,” croaked Alex, and he could hear the tightness of his own voice. Charlie probably heard it too, for he lifted his eyes guiltily to meet Alex's, and Alex knew what was coming before Charlie even started talking.

“Listen, I'm sorry about the other day.” Charlie's eyes were so open Alex felt he was drowning in them. “I caught the wrong idea of things. I didn't mean to upset you or offend you, and God, I'm so sorry--”

“You didn't. Get it wrong, I mean,” said Alex, and then shuffled his weight on his feet as he stood up, trying to find a way to make this less awkward and finding none. “I've never kissed a guy before. I lost it a bit there for a sec.”

“Oh. _Oh_ ,” Charlie's eyes widened. He stood back to his full height, peering down at Alex with renewed interest. “Well-- I've never done it either.”

“What,” said Alex flatly. He stared at the jock in disbelief. “Really?”

“Yeah,” confirmed Charlie, nodding his head. “Was that why you left?”

“Yeah, well,” reasoned Alex, “my dad almost caught me kissing a boy on the very first time it happened, so I _was_ freaking out. It's a thing I rather do on my own.”

“Yeah, I could've probably waited for a better timing,” winced Charlie. “I'm sorry.”

“Don't be,” reassured Alex, feeling lighter than he'd felt in days. Which led him to run his mouth, of course. “It's just, you seemed so confident about everything, I got scared.”

“Shit, is that what you think?” Charlie blurted out, perplexed. “I had no idea what I was doing!”

“It certainly seemed like you did,” stressed Alex, arching his eyebrows, “with you taking the lead and everything.”

“I only did it cause I was positive you wanted it,” pointed out the jock, adopting a defensive stance.

“I did want it!” Alex countered, exasperated.

“Then why are we arguing over this, I think we're on the same side here,” said Charlie impatiently. He fixed Alex with a hard-to-read expression. “That is. If you still want to?”

Alex stared. He paused everything around him for a bit and just stared. Charlie seemed hesitant, he realized, and that was a whole new look on him. He also seemed expectant though, and Alex felt himself mirroring this feeling. It was not all ruined, after all. He had spent those last few days miserable for chickening out on something he wanted because of his insecurities, but now it seemed things were getting a new chance to work out.

“I have to-- I mean, _yes_ , I still want to, I do, but-- I got to take these to Tyler first,” Alex feebly waved the pictures in his hand for effect.

Charlie nodded and reached for Alex's free hand. “I'm sure he can wait,” he said decisively, and tugged on Alex's arm, leading him firmly down the hallway.

Alex scrambled to follow him, so thankful in this particular moment he wasn't stranded with his cane – and he had no idea if it was the situation, or the fact that he had stressed over nothing, or really just plain nerves, but he felt a giggle bubble out of his chest. This was ridiculous. It was also pretty amazing. 

Charlie led them through a door he had no time to recognize, and as he closed it behind them, they were suddenly in the dark. Alex blinked, eyes straining to get used to the penumbra. Once his vision adjusted, he could make out their whereabouts, and he rolled his eyes so hard he felt it at the back of his head.

“Really, Charlie, projection room?” He scoffed. “Could you get any more clich--”

And then Charlie's lips were on his and cliches be damned, Alex couldn't think anymore.

The pictures fell to the floor once again, and he sent a mute apology to Tyler as he lifted a hand to thread into Charlie's hair. He heard the other boy gasp against his lips when his fingers tightened on his scalp, and fucking hell, this was perfect.

It was the first time he was kissing a boy – the first time he was kissing _Charlie_ , and he knew for a fact that it wouldn't be the last. It couldn't be, Alex wouldn't allow it to happen. He wanted it many more times yet – he wanted more of it _right now_ , and the thought both elated and scared him because if it felt like this from the very first round, he was already a goner considering all that they could still do together.

Charlie slowly backed him against the closest wall, body flush against his, and Alex saw goddamn fucking stars. A broken moan escaped his lips when the jock pressed one leg between his, and Alex was thankful for the darkness because he could _feel_ himself flushing. He was not so sure if it was only due to embarrassment, though. 

“Why didn't you answer my texts?” Charlie broke the kiss just enough to put in the question but stood close enough to Alex that he didn't need to raise his voice above a murmur to make himself heard. “I mean, I get that you freaked out when I made a move, but... After?”

“I was scared,” said Alex earnestly. Charlie could probably ask him anything right now, and he would just spill his guts without a second thought. “I'm sorry, I know it was shitty of me. I shouldn't have left you hanging.”

“It was a bit shitty, yes,” agreed Charlie, and Alex felt a chuckle escaping his throat. Charlie's hands moved down the sides of his body, coming to a stop at his hips. “What was your game here, did you plan to avoid me forever?”

“I didn't really have a plan,” sighed Alex. Hit tilted his head back a little, trying to make out the younger boy's features. “I was just trying to figure things out. And once I did, it felt a little too late to just text you back as if I had not blatantly ignored your attempts to talk to me.”

“It's cute that you admit you messed up but don't be too hard on yourself. We're cool,” said Charlie softly, looking at Alex with nothing but fondness in his eyes. “So.”

“So what?” Alex frowned. 

“ _So_ what did you figure out?” Prompted Charlie. 

Alex could evade if he wanted to. Part of him thought he should, if only not to bare his feelings that soon – but honestly he was tired of shutting down what he felt. He didn't think he had the energy to convincingly come up with a lie and to be frank, he didn't want to. He lifted his good hand to Charlie's face, thumbing his cheekbone affectionately. 

“I like you,” he whispered, leaning closer to Charlie so that the tips of their noses touched. This close, he could feel the shiver going through Charlie's body at his words, and he smiled softly. “Quite a lot, actually. And I didn't see it coming, so that's probably why I was a dick about it. It was a lot to process.”

“You're killing me here,” groaned Charlie, resting his forehead against Alex's. “I saw it coming from a mile away. That I was liking you, I mean,” he whispered back, and okay, maybe now Alex was a bit annoyed with the poor lighting. He wished he could see Charlie's face in detail as he said this. “But I never thought I'd get this. Not in my wildest dreams.” 

“Mmm, were dreams involved?” Alex mused, only half-joking.

“Oh, there was an embarrassing lot of them,” admitted Charlie. “Maybe I'll tell you someday.”

“Maybe you could actually show me someday,” suggested Alex as innocently as he could, but he was fairly sure he wasn't pulling it off. If Charlie's dreams were anything like his own, they would need a lot of time to cover both of their fertile imaginations. Alex was totally fine with the prospect.

“Maybe I could.” Alex didn't need to see the look on Charlie's face to know that he was grinning. He could hear it in his voice. “Should I start by giving you a general idea?”

“Fuck yes,” he answered fervently, and Charlie put up zero resistance when Alex pulled him back into another kiss.

* * *

An indefinite amount of time later, Alex barged into the yearbook room again. He had no idea what he looked like, but the expression on Tyler's face spoke volumes.

“Alex, where the hell were you? I've been waiting for you for the last forty minutes!”

Alex groaned. He really could have done without knowing the time-lapse. “Sorry,” he said lamely, handing Tyler his pictures. “I got caught up on something.”

“Well, did that something attack you? Cause you're a mess,” Tyler frowned, assessing his friend's state. His eyebrows shot up to his hairline as he focused on the general direction of Alex's neck. “Wait, were you hooking up with someone? Seriously?”

Alex didn't have enough presence of mind left in him to deny. “Please tell me I don't have a hickey,” he begged, already calculating five different ways he could kill Charlie.

“No, you don't, man, but uh-- you've got some buttons undone there,” Tyler winced, turning his back on Alex quickly as if this way he could purge the image from his eyes. “I'm scared to ask – how did this happen? You literally just left to bring me some copies.”

“I'm not entirely sure,” confessed Alex, redoing his two top buttons with as much dignity as he could muster. “It just-- happened, I guess. I didn't plan to.”

Tyler hummed, still facing away from Alex. “Is it Jess? Are you guys back together?”

“What? Fuck no. No, it was--” and then he stopped short.

Could he tell? He and Charlie had not discussed anything about any status, or if they would be out, or even if they would be a thing. Alex had his hopes, sure, but he didn't know what to answer to this one, and he felt a pang of sadness as he thought this through realistically for the first time.

Charlie was a jock, after all. No matter how much he didn't seem like your stereotypical one, he still was a Liberty Tiger, and it was very much likely that he wouldn't want to make his debut on the team next season already surrounded by gossip. Alex wouldn't even blame him if that was the case. So this was probably it, then. They wouldn't go further than stolen moments like this, heated – admittedly amazing – make-out sessions in semi-dark rooms during the summer break.

Tyler had turned around to look at him, curious now with his silence. “Well? Will you tell me who is the reason I'm now running late with my work?”

“I'm afraid that would be my fault,” said a soft voice from the door. Both Alex and Tyler turned to look. And there was Charlie, wearing an apologetic look on his face and holding a cardboard container in one hand. “But I brought coffee as a peace offer,” he gestured with the box, placing it next to Tyler at the table. “I'm Charlie, by the way.”

“I know who you are,” said Tyler, looking halfway between amazed and appalled. His eyes traveled from Charlie to Alex a few times in quick succession, and Alex mildly feared his friend was having a small meltdown. Tyler lowered his eyes to the cups on the holder. “And you brought coffee,” he stated, tone flat.

“I did, yes,” said Charlie, a bit uncertain. His gaze flashed to Alex before returning to Tyler. “Wasn't sure what you guys liked, but it's not like there are many options in the cafeteria, so,” he shrugged, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “Your work is awesome, by the way,” he added to Tyler, glancing at the pictures he had just helped Alex gather from the floor – twice – a few minutes ago. “I don't understand much about photography but these give me a nice feeling as I look at them. I guess that's maybe kind of the point of it?”

Tyler was now staring at Charlie as if he had grown a second head right in front of his eyes. Alex was unnerved by his silence, and by the entire situation really (was he reading this wrong or Charlie _just didn't care_ that people knew?), and he had just grabbed a coffee to occupy his hands with when Tyler's voice broke into the room. 

“That is the point, yeah,” he nodded, eyes scanning the remaining cup of coffee before grabbing it. “Thank you.” There was a tiny smile at the corner of his lips, and from what Alex knew of Tyler, that was a whole damn lot.

“You're welcome,” answered Charlie, and he too seemed lighter. He smiled at Alex, fondly. “Alex was showing me your pictures before we got here.”

“Oh, was that what he was doing now,” said Tyler, and Alex felt his face burn. 

“Oh my God, stop,” he grunted, embarrassed, but part of him was relieved this was playing out like an ordinary thing. Charlie looked at him clueless, and Tyler, the bastard, now had an actual grin on his face.

“Never in a million years, I would have guessed--” he started, way too amused for Alex's ears. 

“I know, Tyler, I know,” Alex pinched the bridge of his nose tiredly.

“What's going on here?” Asked Charlie, confused. 

“Oh, nothing to worry, man,” assuaged Tyler. “But you should probably pull your collar up. _You_ actually have a hickey.” 

“What?” Alex jolted away from the table he was leaning into, scurrying to peer closer at Charlie's neck.

And yeah, there it was. Tyler was not kidding.

“Oh, fuck _me_ ,” said Alex, with feeling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you all sooo much for reading<3 please let me know your thoughts on this one! It was such a fun ride to write it :D


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